Good points - thank you. I agree - red is a last choice - but I opted for it because I wanted the places where castles / holds are located to stand out. The map is tied to a series of episodes so it is almost 'quick reference' for a reader. With such a type of map, I combine over-emphasis layered on landsat images. In those, changes of ground type is sometimes abrupt and sometimes a blending. I am only just learning that. The style of this map is 'Get across what is where and located where from what - where is the action.'

Thank you for the reference urls - many thanks. I've done some wandering through the maps on this site. Keeping in mind that maps are linked to some story - the various styles are very interesting. The styles are very expressive of the mood of a story.

Stretched vs high detail - I need to be more careful on that. In photoshop, it can become a massive file. And it has to loadable to a website. But, you are correct on that.

Regards,
Gary